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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 221
Apprentice
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OP
Apprentice
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 221 |
Dear all, I have a Roland Fantom G which I use to compose music (pop/soul/light jazz) using the on board sequencer. I use Biab to arrange the backing tracks. So far so good. Lately I'm discovering the needings to play popular songs in real time, and let my wyfe singing. Doing (quite) everything by myself, even with the help of Biab, is sometime too time consuming. I'm considering the use of an arranger, but I'm skeptical because I find an arranger limited in some way. However I've found the Korg PA3X LE, and was quite impressed by this demo on SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/korg/sets/pa3x-le-demo_full-songs So impressed, that I'm considering to sell the Fantom G and buy a PA3X LE, because in that way: - I can use it as a real time arranger - I can use it as a workstation, as master, and still using its internal sounds and Biab when I want to compose in the 'other' way. Often I don't have the time and/or the desire to dig in the sound programming, and/or arrange a whole song from scratch. And with an arranger I think I may have more fun with other musicians and friends. I don't know if the sound quality could be compared with a workstation, but from what I've heard, they are more than decent. The on board sequencer of the PA3X LE is sadly not so user friendly like the one of the Fantom G, and would probably force me to use a computer and a DAW, but I think this would happen eventually more or later, even with the Fantom G.. What do you think about this crazy idea ? Do someone of you have some experience with arrangers, in particular with the Korg PA3X LE ? Regards, Sergio
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 1,334
Expert
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Expert
Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 1,334 |
Well....I checked out your link and even looked at another link. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PFsg2KD3iAPersonally, all the patches are far too midi sounding vs a real instrument. IE: the sax, guitar patches....just far too cheezy for my liking. But, we all write from different perspectives and for different purposes. The truly unappealing aspect is the price point at 2799$....whew. It should come bundled with 10 cases of El Patron for that price.  If those patches are appealing to you for the genre you like to write then it's a judgement call for you. I'd recommend gaining a bit of 'desire' to learn/use BIAB and buying the UltraPak to actually get some real musician backing tracks at a fraction of the price of the Korg device...and....your efforts will likely sound much better. Yes...it would require a bit of 'desire' and application on your part. I'm little help for your actual decision but maybe it will add a modicum of perspective with any other comments and you got a bump. Carry on....get out your wallet and happy spending.
Last edited by chulaivet1966; 01/08/15 11:41 AM.
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,611
Veteran
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Veteran
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,611 |
My perspective;
every keyboard is different and you will want to eventually change from the Korg. Nothing wrong with that, simply that time will demand it. The Korg may be fine for now, but a 'new thing' will inevitably come along.
If you really learn how to use BiaB/RB they will work with ANY keyboard/synth you end up using. Plus be familiar to work with even when using a totally foreign synth.
I spent years learning this. Creating projects on one work station that didn't fully work on another (or newer) one, etc., cost me lots of time.
I'd suggest hunkering down and learning one platform that will work now and in the future. At this time I think that would be PC based, like BiaB/RB.
Just my thoughts for time/money invested.
I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome
Make your sound your own!
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 3,742
Veteran
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Veteran
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 3,742 |
Lately I'm discovering the needings to play popular songs in real time, and let my wyfe singing.
depends on what you mean by "popular songs" you could check out Norton Music's User Styles for Band-in-a-Box http://www.nortonmusic.com/ maybe one or more fake books would be useful
Lenovo YOGA 900 Window s 10 Home 64bit M4 pro Mac mini 1tb HD 24GB mem casio wk7500 presonus audiobox i2 usb interface
casio wk-7500
biab & realband 2025 everything pk both with Current builds
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 2,504
Veteran
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Veteran
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 2,504 |
Hi Sergio. I've been in the same boat many times myself. You have some really good advice from some of the forum members above. From my point of view, I don't understand the need for either arrangers nor workstations these when you have BIAB or RB or Sonar or any other DAW.
External DAW's are far more comprehensive than any on-board sequencer these days. If its better, additional or more sounds that you want, try an external HW synth or rompler...I use a motif and fantom rack mounted units. If its even more sounds that you need, there are some extremely capable VSTI's these days.
Look into getting a good controller keyboard or a stage piano board and run the external synths, romplers and DAW from those. You'll save a ton of money and have a much better and more capable system.
I gave up on having the latest greatest keyboard arranger/ workstation years ago...got rid of them all. Went back to my very first keyboard... a classic 30 year old Yamaha DX7II and run everything from that with BIAB and RB.
Win11, Intel i7 7700K 4.2Ghz, 32Gb RAM, 2x1Tb HD, 500Gb NVMe, BIAB/RB 2026, MOTU 828MK3 audio, MOTU Midi Express, Yamaha Montage 7, DX7II, TX802, Motif XS Rack, Roland Fantom XR Rack, Oberheim Matrix 1000, VoiceLive3 Extreme, Kontakt 6, SampleTank 4.3
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 1,334
Expert
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Expert
Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 1,334 |
Went back to my very first keyboard... a classic 30 year old Yamaha DX7II and run everything from that with BIAB and RB. Ha...I'm still using my Roland JV30 as a controller purchased in 1994. The on board sounds haven't worked in a few years. They'll work for a few seconds then it seems the oscillators just seems to fade out and I get a fuzzy, delayed sound with lack of any volume....just a guess. It's no matter because I haven't used the on board patches in a decade and it still responds/triggers my other modules just fine. It appears semar isn't enamored with our suggestions. Good luck semar...
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Ask sales and support questions about Band-in-a-Box using natural language.
ChatPG's knowledge base includes the full Band-in-a-Box User Manual and sales information from the website.
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XPro & Xtra Styles PAK Sets On Sale Now - Until May 15, 2026!
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Band-in-a-Box 2026 for Mac Videos
With the release of Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac, we’re rolling out a collection of brand-new videos on our YouTube channel. We’ll keep this forum post updated so you can easily find all the latest videos in one convenient spot.
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Check out this forum post for "One Stop Shopping" of our Band-in-a-Box® 2026 Mac Videos!
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Along with version 2026, we've released an incredible lineup of new content! There's 202 new RealTracks, brand-new RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, “Songs with Vocals” Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 5, two new RealDrums Stems sets, XPro Styles PAK 10, Xtra Styles PAK 21, and much more!
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